


Cup of coffee and a slice of your heart

by singilu



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-11-05
Updated: 2014-11-05
Packaged: 2018-11-13 08:15:37
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 20,014
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11180709
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/singilu/pseuds/singilu
Summary: Cup of coffee and a slice of your heart, Lu Han/Sehun, side slight Baekhyun/Chanyeol, NC-17, 20 140 words-au, the entire fic is pg-13, except the last bonus scene that may be skipped entirely, if you decide to read on, be warned for rimming- Luhan is a young tycoon who owns a network of cafés. When a new store in the chain opens, he finds himself reconnecting with his love for coffee and cake, and finds a new love all together in a certain barista-in-training.- written forselubration fest, originally postedhere





	Cup of coffee and a slice of your heart

Lu Han steps through the door into the newly open café and smiles a little at the sound of soft chimes from above his head. Minseok's settling right in, then.

"Don't stand in the way of paying customers," the said man chides from his place behind the counter, his elbow steady as he pours water from high up into the coffee drip.

"I could be a paying customer," Lu Han says, and smiles. Minseok's coffee always smells the best. "Honestly though, you don't seem all that busy."

"For such a smart guy, you don't know much about busy hours of a café located near a university, do you?"

"That's why I have you. And _that_ is what makes me really smart."

"Right, right, you big boss, go sit down and let me bring you the new blend I got especially for all the pretty college girls that come by. I think you might just have the exact same taste as them." Minseok chuckles when Lu Han pouts.

"I don't get what you're insinuating," Lu Han says and goes to sit by the window, not far away from the counter, and so that he can see the entire place. He shakes off his suit jacket and loosens his tie a little, breathing in the ever-present aroma of coffee grains.

Coffee shops might not be Lu Han's biggest or most profitable business, but it's definitely his most favorite. It does help that it gives him a chance to sneak in more time with his best friend. Minseok and coffee both feel like the most comfortable and natural part of his life sometimes, the ideal reprieve from his busy schedule. He wiggles his toes in his too narrow toe tips and focuses back on the counter and Minseok flitting around. He jumps when suddenly, a chair screeches behind him and he realizes one of the employees had been cleaning on the upper half-floor and now has moved to swipe invisible cup circles from the tables around him. He's a young, pretty boy, and Lu Han raises an eyebrow at Minseok. The door opens then, and three laughing girls come in, pointing at the cute figures drawn on the black board around today's cold special and eyeing the cakes.

"Sehun, come up here," Minseok says towards the back rooms, and another boy comes out, probably even taller than the one who quickly finishes the last table and moves behind the counter. A loud clamber sounds from back there, and Minseok rolls his eyes then focuses forward just as another group of girls comes in. "Chanyeol, try not to drop all the cakes before they even cool down, so we have something nice for these lovely girls." He smiles and winks, and one of the girls blushes.

Lu Han rolls his eyes. He keeps playing with the cute sugar bowl, picking at the sugar cubes until he drops one of them on the table. Three girls order and one of the boys start preparing the cake order while Minseok starts on the coffee drinks. The last boy takes over the cash register, sleepily watching as the girls point at different drinks, and Lu Han thinks that for being open for barely two weeks, this shift of the newest Peter Pan café is pretty well-coordinated.

Another sugar cube falls on the table, and Lu Han nimbly starts pushing them around the table. Minseok narrows his eyes at him. The second group of girls pay and start climbing up the iron staircase.

"Sehun, carry this order over and take this americano to that guy who's botching up my sugar cubes. Entertain him for a while so he doesn't make a mess, would you?"

Lu Han tries to glare but gets distracted by the boy, Sehun, leaving the cash register and stepping around the counter. He's so ... young; he's tall, has an almost strangely long torso and bare ankles, and his forehead is high. His dark hair is styled up, and he looks good in the black apron and white shirt, but his eyes are sleepy, and Lu Han worriedly follows his steps, wondering if the coffees and cakes have a chance of making it to the girls. They do and the girls practically sigh as Sehun turns around and faces Lu Han.

"Do you want to order anything else with that?" he asks, probably seeing a perfect opportunity for up-selling. His voice is deeper than Lu Han thought it would be, and up this close, Lu Han is a little overwhelmed by how he has to crane his neck and how the boy stares at him intensely. "Chanyeol's cakes are actually pretty good for someone who isn't really a cook," he says. "I mean, he's definitely better at baking than at waitting tables."

"Well, that's reassuring," Lu Han gets out. Sehun recoils a little.

"I ..." he shakes his head. "I meant it, the cakes are good."

Minseok is shaking in laughter as he continues to draw some ridiculous design on the last cappuccino, and Sehun grabs the hem of his apron and furrows his eyebrows.

"Please forgive our Sehun; sometimes he tries too hard," Minseok saves the boy, and he ducks behind the counter quickly, eyes down and little more alert.

"I was joking," Lu Han hisses at Minseok, then tries to school his features into a pleasant smile as he looks at Sehun. "You're not in trouble or anything. I don't talk into Minseok's personal choices. Not much, anyway." Now the boy is positively shaking.

"Oh man," Minseok pushes the cappuccino away and doubles in laughter. "Now you did it. Way to introduce yourself. Sehun, Jongin, this is Lu Han, he owns the Peter Pan franchise and this shop specifically, too. And he loves to put his foot in his mouth."

Sehun blinks. Jongin scrambles to quickly carry the tray full of cakes and drinks up the stairs. Lu Han pouts harder.

"Maybe I should just fire you," he says. When Sehun ducks into the back room again, he adds, "I don't remember Peter Pan to be laboring under the concept of flower boy personnel. What is this, Minseok? This is not what I meant when I asked you to get things on the right track over here."

Minseok winks at him. "One of my many personal touches. Let me walk you through them."

Minseok did not in fact hire only pretty twinky boys to work in the latest addition to the Peter Pan coffee chain, as Lu Han finds out a week later when he stops by the café right before it closes. He and Minseok have plans on watching Premier League matches and drinking beers until they pass out because Lu Han needs the distraction and Minseok isn't one to say no to German beer and English football. There is a stunning girl cleaning the area around the coffee machine and the cash register and another with a shocking mane of blond hair wiping down the tables. Minseok is nowhere to be seen, so Lu Han comes up and orders today's special, eyeing the cakes still on display.

They really do look delicious, and it makes Lu Han think of Sehun and his adamant assurance about the quality of their pastry chef who is actually not a chef at all. As Lu Han learned, Chanyeol is a music major one year out of college, bass playing band leader by night and amateur, self-taught cake genius by day. Minseok called him a walking disaster about to happen and sounded very fond. Lu Han shook Chanyeol's hand, annoyingly looking up yet again, and thought he might want to see him on stage, just because Chanyeol had smiled so very broadly.

"Chanyeol, you do not need to come up with a new special cake of the day every single night. And I'm _not_ paying you overtime for it either. You should have been gone three hours ago; now go away," Minseok is saying from the kitchen of the café now, rather loudly, and the girl brewing Lu Han's coffee laughs.

"Minseok-ah, let him work off all the flour he's spilled in the past week," she says, almost chiding, and Lu Han startles at the familiarity with which she addresses Minseok. Minseok pokes his head out of the kitchen.

"What did I tell you about worker's rights, Qian? Slave work is not in the Peter Pan’s policies guide book," he says.

Lu Han chuckles. "Which is honestly pretty strange because Minseok helped write those," he says. The girl behind the register raises an eyebrow, and Minseok gives him an unimpressed look.

"Did you come to scare more of my employees?" he asks, making another hush motion towards the kitchen then coming out into the café. "Meet Song Qian, our manager in training," he says. "Song Qian, meet Lu Han, the obnoxious owner."

Song Qian smiles, and Lu Han only realizes she is speaking to him in Chinese when she is done with her polite greeting. He lights up and shakes her hand, and Minseok laughs, grabbing the cake closest to him, and pushing the plate with it and the coffee towards Lu Han.

"Now go sit down where you aren't in the way until we close up."

Lu Han nods. Song Qian laughs again and mutters, "such an obedient boy" under her breath, almost motherly. Lu Han shakes his head, stretching his legs in his slacks and regretting that he didn't change into jeans in his office before coming out.

The cake is really, really good. The coffee as always is wonderful, and Minseok really knows how to pick his co-workers. Lu Han pats himself on the shoulder for persuading Minseok to work for him, in exchange for leaving him his freedom and for letting him still manage his own café out of the chain, in between setting up new Peter Pans, and giving his advice in abundance whenever Lu Han needed a bit of a perspective on the franchise. The other girl on staff tonight, Krystal, pulls down her apron and waves at him some time later, ready to leave, when the door opens, chiming.

"Sehun," she says, surprised, and Lu Han shifts his eyes towards the boy. Sehun looks haggard. He's wearing sweatpants and a hoodie, his cheeks are red from exertion, and his hair is stuck to his forehead with sweat.

"Oh good, hyung, you're still here," he says towards Minseok, bending in half and catching his breath.

"What happened?" Qian comes out too, and of course they're all doting on him already. Lu Han can't say he doesn't understand. Sehun straightens up, and it's a startling difference--the way he stands so straight now, like he has a stick stuck along his spine.

"I'm really sorry," he says, and bends a ninety degree bow, "Jongin and I can't come to our shift tomorrow."

Minseok's mouth pulls into a line, and Sehun's, Lu Han notices, mimics the same expression. "What, both of you?"

"Yeah, I, uhm Jongin got hurt; he can't even sit at the moment. He's pulled his back again, that idiot, and I can't leave him like that, because he will try something stupid like go to class or make food." Sehun fidgets, and Lu Han notices him clutching two plastic bags in his right hand, one from a drug store, another from a grocery store.

"If Jongin is hurt, we have to deal with that of course, but Sehun, you were supposed to open tomorrow," Minseok sighs.

"Please, that's why I ran here, I didn't. I didn't want to call. Just for tomorrow. You won't fire us, will you?"

Minseok shakes his head, and behind him Song Qian seems to pull out the attendance sheet, possibly already trying to work out the shifts.

"It's too short notice," Minseok starts, and stops when Lu Han gets up.

"Minseok will figure it out," he says. "No slaving our employees, remember," he adds, glancing at Minseok quickly. He wonders why he's sticking his nose where he promised Minseok he wouldn't. But Sehun's fists are clenched and he seems really worried. "Is Jongin going to be okay? Do you need help getting him to the doctor?" he asks, focused on the boy again.

Minseok glares at him, but Lu Han, right now, is exuding his aura of decisiveness and definitiveness, the one that makes him so successful in his work. He doesn't do that very often around his best friend, which is probably why Minseok stays quiet. Lu Han has no doubt that Minseok will give him shit about this later, calling him soft or bossy or overbearing or something, but right now Lu Han wants Sehun to start breathing properly and to relax a little. He dares to touch the small of his back, just for a second, and Sehun looks at him in wonder and a bit of hope.

"Yeah?"

Song Qian looks a little worried, but she nods at Minseok, and Minseok shrugs. "I'll come in to open, and if all else fails, I'll call Lu Han to stand and be pretty behind the cash register. I'm sure mister big boss can find the time to help out," he says, challenging Lu Han to say something. "Right, Lu-ge?"

Lu Han laughs. "Yes, boss." He turns to Sehun, reaching up to ruffle his hair, and ignores Minseok's loud snort behind him.

"Now, how about I give you a lift home?" Lu Han asks. Minseok doesn't even blink anymore. Lu Han glances at him. "We can meet up later, right?" he asks, apologetically, pouting a bit, maybe just a little on purpose this time.

"Actually, if I'm opening tomorrow, maybe we could move this to another evening?"

Lu Han nods, grabbing Sehun's elbow. "Thanks Minseokie, I'll call you, okay?" he says, and guides the boy out, ignoring three pairs of eyes boring into their backs.

Lu Han learns that both Sehun and Jongin are in their third year of college, childhood friends, and in a dance team. He learns that Jongin is "really, really good, but stupid because he trains too much and then his back gets really bad. It's not even his major, dance, you know, but he loves it and tries too hard, that idiot, and then I end up having to pick him off the floor, literally," Sehun rants.

Lu Han doesn't stop him when the navigation tells him to pull to the side in front of the apartment building not too far from the café, but instead lets him get it all out. He watches Sehun's mouth move and tongue peek out as he complains, talking fast. He watches his thighs moving up and down as he bounces on his heels constantly, and he watches as his hands clutch the plastic bags until his fingers turn white. He cringes when he realizes one of the bags is full of ramyeon. When Sehun starts, realizing they have arrived, and blushes a deep red, Lu Han has to laugh.

"I'm sorry, Lu Han-ssi," he stutters a little.

"Hyung, it's Lu Han-hyung," Lu Han corrects quickly. "Do you want me to come up with you?" he asks. He has no clue what to do about a strained back, but ...

"No, no, oh god, no, the flat is a mess, and Jongin is a mess, no. Just. Thank you. For this, I," he slumps a little and looks tired. Lu Han imagines him dragging an injured Jongin to their flat then running out to shop for medication and food and then running more to catch Minseok in person. He brushes Sehun's hair from his forehead.

"Take good care of your friend, Sehun-ah," he says. Sehun scrambles to undo his seat belt, bowing again and again as he gets out of the car. Lu Han watches him run inside and wonders what exactly he's doing.  
  


Three visits to a new Peter Pan café in less than a month is definitely out of the norm, and Lu Han knows this. He still finds himself driving around to the back and parking his car next to Minseok's motorbike. He pats the helmet attached to the back of the seat and smiles. This café is closer to his office than any of the new ones they've opened in months, and the cakes really are good. He wonders what kind Chanyeol has made today. Minseok sent him pictures of some really cute ones over the week, and his mouth is watering.

As it is, Lu Han thinks it's perfectly justifiable for him to be here yet again, to walk around the house to the main entrance with a spring in his step despite it being late and despite his tie itching. Minseok gave him enough shit three days ago, when they finally managed that delayed football night, about ditching him last time and ‘adopting another pet boy to take care of,’ so he should be relatively safe tonight. Though Lu Han worries a little because when he asked if Jongin was okay, Minseok smirked at him and told him to come and check up on Sehun himself if he was wondering what his pet boy was doing.

Sehun is not a pet. He's not even a boy anymore, only a very young, handsome man. He's only four years younger than Lu Han, anyway. Lu Han is a little startled at how defensive he sounds in his head. Still, Sehun is not his new pet. He isn't anything but a cute barista in training who was in distress the last time they met. Lu Han doesn't collect pet boys either. It's just that Minseok doesn't understand how much EXO's scholarship program means for Lu Han. Besides, there's plenty of _girls_ in it too. It's just that Lu Han sometimes takes some of the applicants out for a beer and tries to help them if he can, and the girls usually don't take him up on the offer of soda or beers and karaoke. He doesn't understand why; he bets at least some of them like DBSK, and he would feel much less awkward singing idol songs at midnight with a few fellow fangirls present.

He's probably pouting about this when he enters the café because Minseok bursts into laughter. Maybe Lu Han should get Song Qian to send Minseok's schedule to him so that he isn't actually in the café when Lu Han comes. But then he'd have one less reason for coming, and ... he looks at Minseok all confused.

"Hyung," he hears a voice from behind, and he jumps. Minseok and Chanyeol, who for some reason is behind the register, start laughing at him really loudly. Lu Han looks around, searching for the source of his scare. The café is still packed, which should be strange for this hour, but then Lu Han notices a boy in a snapback and a too-big hoodie fiddling with a mike in the furthest shop window and he lets out a loud breath.

"Open mike?" he asks, excited, turning in the direction of the voice that scared him, which happens to belong to Sehun, at last. Sehun's looking kind of awed. "Is it over?"

"You're not singing DBSK songs in my café," Minseok shouts after him.

"Hey! This is my café!" Lu Han says back, beaming at Sehun. "He tends to forget details like that," he adds. Sehun giggles.

"It's kind of easy to do. He's much scarier than you," Sehun says, then his ears turn red. "Uhm, I mean. You're too kind." Now his cheeks are flaming too. Lu Han watches him in amusement and fascination.

"Are you scaring my personnel again?" Minseok asks. He's already grinding coffee, and there's no one standing by the register so it must be for Lu Han.

"How's Jongin?" Lu Han asks, eyes still fixed on Sehun, who has lifted his apron to his face at Minseok's words.

"Oh," Sehun drops his hands. "Oh, he's better. He's trying to make me do his laundry for him, so that means there's not much more wrong with him anymore," he says, and rolls his eyes a little. "He should be back at work next week, and Chanyeol's been helping to cover his shifts, and Minseok is actually letting him come back. So he's not bad really. Don't tell him I called him scary," Sehun blabbers again, until Lu Han reaches out to push at the bottom of his chin, closing his mouth. Sehun squeaks, and Lu Han raises an eyebrow.

"Don't do that," Sehun mumbles, face still so very red.

"Then relax. Minseok would probably think it's a compliment calling him scary." Lu Han winks at Sehun, then stares. Oh god, he's flirting and he can't stop it. Not when Sehun has forgotten all about his cleaning table duties and his eyes are wide and his mouth is turned down into that disapproving expression that seems to be quite a favorite of his, but he's clearly not all that unhappy, maybe just startled.

The mike screeches as the man fiddling with it disassembles the mike stand and goes to unplug the sound boxes.

Sehun blinks, and Lu Han finally walks to the counter and grabs the mug of coffee from Minseok, whose smirk could not be possibly any more disgusting.

"So what brings you here, big boss? Bored at some shareholder’s meeting again?"

Lu Han takes a deep breath, inhaling the smell of freshly brewed coffee, and takes a careful sip from his cup. "I'm trying to work less, go home at a normal hour. Junmyeon has been on my case for a while now. He says I can let people do their jobs and enjoy my big boss status now. Tonight, he tried to sell playing golf as a suitable free time activity to do during daylight to me, so I fled. I mean, _golf_." He scrunches his nose and catches Sehun watching him from where he's collecting empty glasses, cups and plates as people slowly start to leave the café now that there are no more performances. "But maybe we could go kick a ball someday?" Lu Han continues, cheerful at the prospect of playing football again.

Minseok nods, shooing Chanyeol away from the fine china and filling a dishwasher himself. "I can see when people are free to go," he says, taking a set of teapots from Sehun and bringing them to the kitchen for hand washing. Lu Han watches him go, sipping the coffee, and wonders where his sneakers are.

"Hyung." Suddenly, Sehun is standing in front of him, tall and straight as a stick again, shoulders stiff. "I...I wanted to thank you. For last time. I mean, you were great, and you really didn't have to take me home. I don't even live all that far away. So. So I wanted to thank you. I thought maybe I could take you out in return, for a coffee or something," Sehun finishes, and he rolls his eyes, as if at his own suggestion. "Or something," he repeats, "since clearly you are all set on the coffee front."

Lu Han shakes his head. "No, no you don't have to thank me, it was nothing," he says, and regrets it immediately because Sehun's shoulders sag, and he frowns. "I mean."

"I just, you really were good to me and to Jongin, too. I mean Minseok could have found a replacement." Sehun looks down.

Lu Han truly had nothing to do with that. He can't possibly take credit for Minseok being a decent person, so he shakes his head. "No, I didn't do anything," he says. Sehun suddenly looks so small, which is a silly thought because he is taller than Lu Han and his shoulders are probably broader, too. He might … really want Lu Han to say yes, and so, "But okay. You can take me out for coffee or something," he says at last.

Sehun lights up. "Great. Do you have time tonight? We just need to close up and then we could do something."

Lu Han smiles, and maybe this smile is too wide because Sehun stares a little. But Sehun, so excited, doesn't help Lu Han's jaw in staying where it should so that he looks like a decent person. "Yeah, sure," he says.

Minseok comes out of the back. "Chanyeol, you can close, right? I need to go," he says. "Got plans tonight."

Now that is something Lu Han will have to ask about later, but for now he wraps his hands around his coffee mug and watches Minseok leave.

"You're staying?" Minseok asks, an eyebrow raising.

"Have to finish my coffee," Lu Han shrugs. Minseok snorts but waves goodbye and leaves.

"Chanyeol, I'm leaving too," the guy in the snapback and oversized clothes says. He's dragging a metal suitcase on small wheels where the music equipment must be behind him. He blows Chanyeol a kiss and winks. "Come find me when you're done," he says. Chanyeol laughs, head thrown back.

"Don't lock me out, Baekhyunnie," he says and goes back to fiddling with register. Lu Han mildly wonders if they are living together. If they are dating, and if Chanyeol actually knows how to close the register, or if he's just winging it.

"I'll leave the window open just in case," Baekhyun shouts, the door already closing behind him. Chanyeol shakes his head, looking terribly fond. Lu Han doesn't ask. He finishes his cup of coffee and actually goes and helps Sehun wash the dishes on impulse. Sehun and Chanyeol wipe the floors down, and not an hour later, Sehun and Lu Han are standing in front of a dark, locked up café.

"Uhm," Sehun starts. Suddenly, he goes pale, and it's like he's just realized he invited a CEO of EXO Corporation out, and he has no clue what to do or where to take him. Lu Han contemplates just telling him they should go for dinner and that he will pay, when Sehun's eyes light up.

"Hyung, have you ever had bubble tea?" he asks. Lu Han wants to laugh again, and it's alarming how easily that comes with Sehun around, since he barely knows him.

"Yes! I love bubble tea!" Lu Han perks up.

"Oh really? Me too. I know a good place around here. Let's go before it closes," Sehun says, grabbing the sleeve of Lu Han's suit jacket. He starts to run before Lu Han can suggest they drive again.

It's not far away, really, but they're both panting by the time they arrive. As they order, Sehun watches Lu Han navigate the flavors of tea and tapioca and jelly in slight awe.

"Don't tell Minseok," Lu Han says, and he winks at Sehun conspiratorially. "He thinks bubble tea is blasphemy. Who needs that when you can just have another cup of coffee, right? Or proper tea!"

Sehun blinks then laughs. "You are so cute, hyung," he say, then slaps his bubble tea free hand over his mouth.

"Oh no, you didn't," Lu Han feigns shock. And he knows his expression right now probably doesn't help his case. His face is really unfortunate. "I'm very manly." He'll just have to prove that to Sehun with his actions. "It's you who is very cute here, Sehunnie," he adds. The name slips. Sehun's ears are pink again in the light of the shop, but he doesn't protest the name or the statement.

"Does that mean I can get you to do things for me if I try to act cute?" he asks.

Oh no, Sehun has no idea how weak Lu Han is to his pouts and frowns and down-turned thin lips already. He might just be Lu Han's doom. "No," he says, trying to sound decisive.

They sit on a bench outside the shop that is now closing for the night behind them, and Sehun asks all kind of questions now that he's loosened up, now that Lu Han's told him several times he likes his bubble tea and it's a perfectly good way to thank him. Sehun asks about what it's like to manage such a big business and juggle so many things.

And Lu Han says that it's hard and _still_ a bit overwhelming, but challenging. "You know, good kind of challenging."

Sehun asks if Lu Han likes it.

Of course Lu Han does. “You know, I only pick up things I find interesting. I only work with people I think are interesting."

Sehun's eyes gleam a little. "How do you come up with all these things, though? How do you know what will work and what won't? "

"Honestly, mostly I just had a hunch. I always have a hunch, and bit of luck, especially at the beginning. And then comes lots of hard work that I get to delegate to others now." He snorts a little as he remembers Junmyeon telling him he sucks at doing just that.

At some point Lu Han finally stops the barrage of questions and asks his own. Sehun studies economics, and Jongin is a literature major, but they both love dance above it all, practice all night and dream of a studio. Sehun wants to teach kids because they are so enthusiastic, or just anyone who wants to dance because he hated it the most when, in his early days classes, people were told they couldn't dance, or that they couldn't feel the rhythm, and that they were hopeless.

"Dancing is fun, you know. It's about moving and feeling the music however you want and enjoying it. You don't have to be good at it to do it right," he says.

Lu Han hears the _but_. "It's your dream; I think you could do it. You know, EXO Corp has a startup projects fund set up. You could apply. Maybe take a few proper teaching classes before. You could make it not only about the dance, but about teaching the kids how to have the correct posture, though in that case maybe you have to start with Jongin.” Sehun snorts into his bubble tea, and Lu Han feels warm about that, and continues with more enthusiasm. “It could be about children gaining good exercise and movements habits and learning how to fall and such. I think it's a wonderful idea to open a place where anyone could come and try for as long as they want to. You might not be a millionaire, but you know. Let me give you the contact for the fund office, you can ask about the requirements, figure more out until you graduate and get out of the army."

"Hyung," Sehun says, a bit embarrassed. "It's okay, I wasn't trying to fish for any favors or anything." He looks down at his empty bubble tea cup sheepishly. "I really just wanted to take you out to thank you and because, because, well I just wanted to."

Lu Han laughs, "Oh, I'm not the one who chooses who we help. I told you. I can delegate my work now." He ruffles Sehun's hair again. He can't help it, wanting to touch him. "There's a committee of competent people, and there's a competition where the winner earns all initial funding but then they steadily pick and choose startups to support in various ways and to various extent through the year as well." Lu Han pokes at Sehun's cheek again, making him look up and into Lu Han's eyes again. “It's a lot of work," he continues when Sehun finally does, "but that's how I got started, because someone believed me and gave me a loan when no bank would. So you should try, and I will stay far away from the selection process because last time I tried and told them that I had a hunch, Yunho threw me out of the office. I promise I'm just offering you an opportunity you could take, not favoring you."

Sehun is laughing at him a little. "You're pouting, hyung," he says, but he takes one of the cards Lu Han carries everywhere around with him. He really is thankful to his first benefactor, and he's been trying to give out some of his luck to those who need it. He won't tell Sehun that he still picks a few startups from time to time, in secret, on his hunch and helps personally because Sehun doesn't need to know that. He respects that he wants to try on his own, and there's nothing wrong with him being an official cheerleader.

He startles a little when he finds himself planning on invading Sehun's life. The other just asked him out for bubble tea. Sehun is fiddling with the cup now, and there's a little smile on his lips, a content one, as he keeps patting the pocket on his hoodie like his dreams just got that much more real.  
"It's time to go; don't you have classes in the morning?" Lu Han says at last.  
"Hyung, I sleep through most of them anyway," Sehun says honestly, and Lu Han narrows his eyes.

"I see you're working hard," he says, voice grave, and Sehun visibly backpedals.

"No, I didn't mean that. Okay I did, but I study for my exams, it's just that," he splutters when he catches Lu Han laughing into his sleeve. “You're making fun of me," he says, incredulous. And Lu Han _is_ teasing, and Sehun is so cute. Lu Han wants to pinch his cheek again. "Are you actually a little mean?" Sehun continues in wonder.

Lu Han shrugs. "Just not very cute," Lu Han tells him, as they walk back towards the café where Lu Han left his car. "That's all you need to remember."  
Sehun looks like he wants to protest but keeps it in, shaking his head. Lu Han ends up driving him home again, and Sehun is much less nervous and much more smiley as he gets out of the car this time, having played with Lu Han's car radio the entire way over.

What did you do to Sehun? He looks creepy. He and Jongin still walk around here mostly sleeping, but Sehun's been smiling all gross and he keeps asking me about you. It's sickening. Minseok's text exudes displeasure in its simplicity.

I didn't do anything. ( ˘ ³˘) Lu Han types back cheerfully, rather intrigued though.

You're not fooling anyone.

You're so clever. Luhan types back. He should be looking over the newest EXO Corp project. Instead he's thinking about what Sehun might possibly be asking about.

Look. If he’s the next of your pet boys, you need to tell him clearly. You're already touchy with him. He might get the wrong idea.

I DO NOT HAVE PET BOYS. STOP SAYING THAT!

Well, then carry on soldier. Just know that I heard Chanyeol giving him unsolicited gay sex advice, and while I didn't need to know he likes Baekhyun tasting the same way his favorite cupcakes do, it means you might have to stock up on strawberry lube.

Lu Han chokes on nothing, his chair's backrest dipping back too much from the way he jerks in it. Maybe he really shouldn't set it so loose.

IT'S NOT LIKE THAT EITHER. YOU JERK WHY WOULD YOU TELL ME THAT?!

Then how is it, Lu Han? This is precisely what I'm getting at. You either go be his favorite caring hyung, or you keep flirting with him and mean it. Don't mess with my cute boys and their heads.

ENOUGH! Where did YOU go the other day? You had PLANS?

Lu Han can play dirty, too.

None of your business, Minseok replies, but they're playing football in two days, and Lu Han knows he will get it out of him by the end of the game, or by the third beer post game at the latest.

Then me NOT flirting with Sehun is none of yours, he texts back. He feels smug for about a second for clearly winning this cat fight before he thinks of strawberry lube and Sehun, and this time his chair really tips over from the fast way he scrambles as he tries to shake that feeling off.

Somewhere during their first bubble tea outing, Lu Han exchanged his phone number with Sehun, so after Minseok's _intervention_ Luhan is severely tempted to text Sehun to make sure that the next time he has questions he asks him directly. But that might be a little creepy, so he locks his phone and is about to put it away for the millionth time when it chimes.

Chanyeol’s special is soooo good today, the message from _Sehunnie_ says, a picture of a delicious looking cake with a strawberry on top attached. Lu Han valiantly doesn't think of strawberry lube.

Make Minseok send me some!!! he texts back.

Should I just deliver it?

Lu Han imagines Sehun walking through his office door with sweets and a cup of Minseok’s brew and Sehun's disapproving expression when he sees the mess on Lu Han’s table and no place to put everything down. Maybe he'd be a little impressed by the view.

Don’t try to get out of your shift mister! he types instead. And then when he wonders if maybe that came off a bit meaner than he meant, he adds, Don’t worry about me. Work hard. (ง •̀_•́)ง

(^_−) ☆ Will do, hyung (•̀o•́)ง Sehun texts much later, and Lu Han smiles.

SINCE WHEN ARE WE DOING DELIVERIES? Minseok texts in another ten minutes, and before Lu Han manages to type a suitably smug answer to annoy him, his secretary is placing a cake and coffee on his table.

Lu Han becomes the newest Peter Pan café's regular. He gets to know all the staff, but sadly not their ever-changing rotations, and he probably gains a pound or five eating Chanyeol's pastries. He scrunches his nose when he has to drink coffee from elsewhere because he is once again spoiled on Minseok's coffee, the same way he used to be when he met Minseok in his own family inherited coffee shop, where Lu Han sat, drawing up business plans and then running his first startup, making an improvised office out of the table at the back corner. Until the day Lu Han sold his shares in his very first company, set up to materialize his idea of creating digitalized comics and enabling others to do so, Minseok supplied him with cup after cup of coffee, only charging him for one cup a day. He still has no clue how it happened that with money from that first sell out, no matter how generous the buyers were, he ended up in real estate and stocks, only to return and repurchase his first startup back and help expand it. He opened the first Peter Pan café then because there weren’t any coffee shops he liked that much near his new shiny office and it was a chance to work with Minseok again. Startups and their support has become EXO Corps’ specialty, essentially another reason the publicly traded portion of their stocks keep rising in value, and Lu Han still gets excited when he gets to do more than real estate management.

It’s been a while since Minseok agreed to set up a Peter Pan café personally. Now, his best friend brewing Lu Han's coffee at least twice a week brings him back those five years when he was twenty and had just quit his dream college that he'd come to Korea for because he couldn't wait to try his own luck anymore. It was reckless, and he really had enormous spades of luck. As Lu Han watches Krystal study for a midterm in the midst of making coffee and Jongin striking funny dance-like poses as he brings plates topped with sweets to the regular customers, a flock of girls that adore him, he feels an overwhelming sense of gratitude and a bit of panic because all of it could have gone so very wrong for him.

"Stop freaking out," Minseok tells him, coming up to his table and handing him his cup of coffee. He rubs a soothing circle into Lu Han's back and smiles at him. "Whatever it is, you'll do your magic and solve it." Minseok could always read him, and it seems Lu Han has been more stressed at work lately, which is when he gets this introspective.  
  
"Sehun's shift starts in an hour, but go and get bubble tea," and Minseok scrunches his nose in disapproval just at the mention of that _potion_ , "when he gets here. You have half an hour, and that should make you happy again. You always look so disgustingly disappointed when you come here and he's not here, anyway."

"I do not," Lu Han protests, shaking his head violently. "Minseokkie, as long as you are here, it always makes me happy to come by," he says, smiling sweetly at Minseok. Minseok snorts and swats Lu Han at the back of his neck.

"You liar."

That's when Sehun comes in, and sees them. He stumbles over his greeting, and his mouth turns downwards. Lu Han wonders if that means he disapproves of his own manners. He looks so good, cheeks windswept, his coat making his shoulders look broader.

"Oh, speak of the devil," Minseok grins, facing Sehun and pointing at Lu Han. "Go fix him. Just pretend you don't go drinking sweet junk with weird stuff swimming in it in front of me, will you?" Minseok sighs dramatically, and goes back behind the counter to help Krystal. Jongin is already untying his apron and throwing it at Sehun.

"Got to go," he says, and darts to the back of the café. Sehun stands there, confused, and Lu Han's lips quirk into a smile.

"Your boss gave you special permission to buy me bubble tea," he says, "before you start your shift," he clarifies.

Sehun nods at that, shaking his head a little then licking his lips. "Hyung, maybe you should just turn Peter Pan into bubble tea shops then," he says, and his look turns positively conspiratorial as he raises his voice so that Minseok hears him.

Lu Han sees Minseok resisting the urge to throw an empty mug he's holding at him. Instead he smiles at the girl he's talking to by the pastries display, a little feral, "Anything I can get you?" he asks. " _Anything but bubble tea_." The girl giggles a little nervously, and Lu Han quickly finishes his coffee and drags Sehun out, already laughing.

Bubble tea shop isn't the only place they've ever been together. But while Lu Han always pays when he takes Sehun to eat after his shift ends or whenever the occasion arises (like that one Saturday Sehun claimed he was bored and Lu Han took him on a spur of a moment tour of food stalls), Sehun always insists on paying for bubble tea. Lu Han lets him this time too and watches as Sehun orders for both of them now, positively glowing about the fact he remembers Lu Han's favorite flavor.

They drink while walking back, and Sehun talks excitedly about the new routine they are practicing with their dance team and absolutely dejectedly about the upcoming winter round of exams even if it's still so far away, which in Lu Han's eyes only means he cares so much more about how he does in school than he normally lets on. Lu Han ruffles Sehun's hair and tickles under Sehun's chin because he's learned, on accident, that Sehun makes the best faces when he does that.

By the time they are back in front of Peter Pan, Lu Han's head is mostly clear and full of only Sehun's sudden changes of expression, his pink lips pulled into a happy smile and his warm hand on Lu Han's elbow as they avoid a big group of girls springing out of the coffee shop, laughing and chatting loudly. Lu Han's tie isn't choking him anymore, and he pushes the dress code revolution he's been thinking of one more day away.

"See you around, hyung," Sehun says, cheerful. "I have to think of somewhere fun to take you to make up for that chicken delivery the other night." he adds, suddenly bashful, and Lu Han blinks. He's been trying not to think about how, when Sehun has whined over texts, three nights ago, about tons of homework both him and Jongin had and how they were hungry and out of ramyeon and food money for the week, he picked up a huge order of chicken and drove over to Sehun's apartment with it.

Sehun still didn't let him in, claiming it's too messy again and that they need fresh air anyway, and he dragged a wide eyed, slack-jawed and very sleepy Jongin, and still a little ruffled Lu Han, disbelieving at making personal deliveries, to a nearby park. They ate there, with their fingers only, and talked loudly with their mouths full, and Jongin and Sehun ended up showing Lu Han a very half-assed dance performance with their bellies too full and limbs too heavy.

It was way too much fun, and Sehun's eyes shone so very brightly. Lu Han definitely didn't want to do it again, just to see Sehun so content, on the verge of falling asleep and probably giving up on all his homework, as they parted in front of the apartment building, and Sehun, on an impulse, hugged Lu Han quickly, mumbling, "You're the best, hyung," into Lu Han's neck before running after Jongin.

Lu Han doesn't think too much about how eventually Minseok will leave the latest addition to the Peter Pan chain behind, returning to his own quaint café so far away on the other side of Seoul. It's been over two months since the place opened, and Minseok keeps hinting that soon Song Qian will be more than ready to take over the manager duties, and he will be able leave.

He concentrates on the luxury of great coffee and the mirth of finding new people that he's absolutely comfortable with. It's not just Sehun, whose presence in Lu Han's everyday life continues to grow through constant messaging and late night meet-ups spent drinking bubble tea, and eating cheap food because Sehun refuses to be taken to the few expensive places Lu Han likes, insisting it's wasted on his student tastes. They get drinks and share worries about Sehun's future, his annoying professors, and even mismatched socks, and Lu Han complains about his supervisory board composed of too-old and inflexible people, about how he feels a loss of control now that his company is too big for him to manage everything himself, and about his too polite porter who refuses to smile at Lu Han. Lu Han, without noticing, has let the entire staff of this Peter Pan café become his friends, marvels in all of them liking him and treating him with ease, teasing him and making fun of him instead of keeping their distance from the big boss. It feels refreshing, so he doesn't think of things that will soon change.

Still, as he sips on a beer and watches Sehun draw patterns on his own fogged glass, he sighs. "I'm going to miss Minseok's coffee almost as much as I'm going to miss having him so close," he says.

Sehun turns to him, eyes serious, mouth in a thin line. "I'm going to learn how to make the coffee as good as Minseok's is, so you don't miss him so much, hyung," he says.

Lu Han pokes his serious cheek and laughs around the rim of his glass. "If you manage, I will never let _you_ go, Sehunnie," he says, tipping back the rest of his drink.

He only realizes how that may have sounded when he notices how pink Sehun's ears are and how shy and soft his gaze has suddenly turned. He doesn't let himself think about how he actually means it.

Lu Han doesn't think about what Minseok has said about Sehun and their very touchy, flirty friendship either. Minseok has tried bringing it up a few more times, and Lu Han has always countered right back, finding leverage when Minseok confessed to a new budding relationship with his coffee supplier, Sunyoung, who Lu Han remembers to be a small but cheeky woman with a lot of charisma. Every time Minseok starts asking about Sehun, Lu Han asks about her, demanding a meeting which Minseok refuses because Lu Han, according to him, will tell her lies about Minseok and all his embarrassing secrets, or both.

For Lu Han, Sehun is ... fresh, vibrant, cute at times, and cheeky and bold on other occasions. Yes, Lu Han wants to see him all the time and touch him alarmingly often, but he doesn't want to dwell on where this is going, content with the slow simmer of everything between them.

It surprises Lu Han, how much he clutches his phone and how much his stomach turns when one night, Sehun only replies to several of his texts hours after Lu Han's sent them, when Lu Han is dozing in front of his TV, with a not really apologetic:

Was out dancing with this cool new guy from the dance team. ♪(┌・。・)┌ Didn't hear my phone. Switched my shift in Peter Pan with Krystal tonight.

Lu Han knows Sehun begged her to do so because Krystal told him as much when Lu Han stopped by, but he assumed it was because Sehun had too much school work or something, not because he went out to party. Like any normal college student does, Lu Han tells himself.

Music was great too, tonight, really loved the DJ (\˳˘ ɜ˘)˳ ♬♪♫ We're thinking of going next week too. You should come too!

Sehun's excitement is so palpable, and Lu Han is not old, but right now he feels a bit like that, old and weary and strangely off his axis.

Wouldn't want to intrude on your date, Sehunnie (;¬_¬) , he writes and instantly feels that might have been a bit too defensive. There's a long pause during which Lu Han stares at his phone and feels like he's back in high school and trying to ask this cute girl in his class out via texts on a pretense of helping her with her math homework.

Oh. No, you wouldn't. Finally a text arrives and it seems like Sehun cut himself mid-sentence. Why would I go on a date with some guy? I mean, did Jongin or Chanyeol mention something?

Sehun sounds confused, no silly pictures, chopped off sentences. Lu Han calls him.

"Hyung," Sehun says, and he sounds almost scared. "It wasn't a date. I mean. How did you ..." he takes a deep breath.

"What is it, Sehun?" Lu Han asks confusedly. "It would be okay if it was a date," he adds, and it taste a little like a lie on his tongue.

"Would it? Really?" Sehun asks, uncertain.

"Of course. I mean you're in college, you're supposed to meet people and go on dates and fall in love. Why would I have a problem with that?" Lu Han stops because he suddenly doesn't trust his voice all that much.

"No. I mean," Sehun takes a deep breath. "It's okay with you that I like boys, then," Sehun sounds so uncertain, and Lu Han blanches. He didn't realize they have never discussed this. He's known for sure ever since Minseok texted him about that lube incident that Lu Han most certainly doesn't contemplate from different angles at times, and he had assumed that Sehun knew about him too. It's not like it was a secret Minseok had to keep or anything.

"Oh, oh," Lu Han starts. "Sehunnie. I don't care who you like as long as it's a person. You know, I might be a little wary if you told me you're in love with your old coffee maker, because that thing sounds vicious and about to burn down your flat, but ..." Lu Han is interrupted when Sehun starts laughing, relieved and bashful into the phone. He stops talking, lets Sehun get it out of the system, recognizes how Sehun seems to be letting go off a worry with his laughter. When Sehun finally quiets down, Lu Han figures he should set the record straight. "Besides, it's not like I didn't date boys before myself. So I'm really not one to throw stones here, Sehunnie."

"Lu Han-hyung, you're really great, you know," Sehun says to that, slowly and so quietly. "You're really, really awesome."

Lu Han's insides twist a little, in pleasure this time. "Of course, I know,” he manages. "Now tell me about this not-date.”

Sehun snorts, but doesn't address Lu Han's jibe, just launches into a long praise of the music, the DJ's mixes of it, and the acoustics of the club, and Lu Han wonders if Sehun would mind terribly if he fell asleep like this, listening to Sehun's excited chatter, concentrating on the highs and lows of his voice instead on the emotions drifting to the forefront of Lu Han's attention all of a sudden. As it turns out, Sehun doesn't mind, not really. He only laughs at Lu Han, sending him text messages full of laughing emoticons and offering to record him some fairytales to fall asleep to, and guilt-tripping him into a Saturday visit to a music shop where he doesn't let Lu Han buy him anything and makes him listen to one too many dance mixes.

After that kind-of-but-not-really revealing conversation, Sehun becomes even more adamant about footing a bill from time to time. He also dresses more carefully when they go out, and Lu Han doesn't really want to notice, but he does. Sehun's gaze lingers more too, and Lu Han in turn lets his own eyes wander more, lets them rest on Sehun's bottom pink lip when Sehun sucks in another tapioca, lets himself appreciate his broad shoulders and slim legs, and surprisingly prominent ass more. Unfortunately, Sehun also touches Lu Han less; where before he'd place his hand on the small of Lu Han's back to get his attention, he now reverts to grabbing at his elbow. When before he would poke freely at Lu Han's stomach after bringing him Chanyeol's latest cupcake invention and teasing him about his sweet tooth, he doesn't touch at all. And he seems to develop a startling aversion to Lu Han ruffling his hair.

"I'm not a kid," he says, every time Lu Han tries it, and dodges away. The few times Lu Han's fingers accidentally slide along his neck when Sehun ducks, Sehun shivers and moves further away from Lu Han. Lu Han always pouts at that, but Sehun isn't looking at him to see it, isn't telling him he's cute; instead he's staring at his feet, lips in a thin line and hands often balled up. He always recovers soon enough, but Lu Han's stomach turns unpleasantly every time Sehun makes space between them, and he doesn't like that at all.

Minseok tells Lu Han he's leaving in two weeks, and Lu Han finally lets himself think about it.

"But then I'll have no reason to come here anymore," he says, sadly, as they go out for drinks that night. "It will be so much effort to just see your face, again," he continues, maybe hoping to make Minseok stay at least until Christmas.

"Please, we've been over this. You come here to see Sehun, so you two can dance your weird mating dance instead of just finally dating. You wouldn't even see me these days if I wasn't always here because you don't have time for anything else but work and Sehun. We both know it's him that makes that ugly face of your light up."

"We play football together twice a week now, so I hypothetically _would_ still meet you," Lu Han says weakly. "And that's not true. I'm always looking forward to seeing you here, Minseokkie.”

"You're looking forward to my coffee, which by the way Sehun is working his ass off to learn how to make _exactly the way Lu Han-hyung likes it_. Lu, your eyes _twinkle_ the moment you see him. The last time I saw you that excited was when you were working on that first comics project, all starry eyed and full of dreams." Minseok sounds a bit nostalgic, and he pats Lu Han's head consolingly, seemingly reminiscing to the beginning of their friendship. "I'm happy for you, just please don't be too stupid about this, okay?" he says. He waves down the bartender and orders them both another round of drinks. Lu Han wraps a hand around Minseok's waist and drops his head on his shoulder.

"You're still my favorite," he says.

Minseok chuckles. "I know, silly. But I think Sehun is completely off the charts."

Lu Han hums.

"Don't keep him in the dark about it for too long. How about you channel that proactive approach you have towards your work projects into your love life for once?"

Lu Han has to laugh. "Proactive approach, huh," he ponders. Minseok only loops his arm around Lu Han's shoulders and squeezes.

"Let that sink in, Lu Han. Let that sink in," he says, and reaches for his drink.

The one thing Sehun always rolls his eyes at when Lu Han mentions it is football. Or rather, he completely dismisses the suggestion that he would enjoy playing it or watching a game.

"Hyung, I suck at team sports. I won't even manage to kick the ball. I sure wasn't able to half the time in high school and my grade depended on it then," he says, not for the first time, cheeks puffing out, and Lu Han's fingers twitch. He resists the urge to go for Sehun's hair, not feeling like experiencing that rejection, and instead pokes at Sehun's arm.

"Okay, so you can't play, but I bet I could get you all cheering and shouting for your team if we were to watch a game," he says.

It's too cold to sit outside the shops with their bubble tea, but they still do. At least it makes Sehun hunch down on himself and huddle close to Lu Han.

"Highly doubt that," Sehun says. "I think I'll leave this to Minseok. This is the one thing I really don't want to replace him at," Sehun says, then almost chokes on a tapioca.

It's on the tip of Lu Han's tongue, asking why Sehun wants to replace Minseok, but he holds back, patting Sehun's back, and when Sehun keeps coughing, hitting him hard. Sehun yelps, but stops coughing, and turns watery eyes at Lu Han.

"Hyung, that hurt. You don't need to prove how manly you are to me by hitting me of all things," he says. His ears and cheeks are red again, but he valiantly continues to complain about Lu Han hitting him, chattering away, clearly in hope of avoiding explaining what he's just said.

"Sehunnie, watch a game with me," Lu Han says in the end, when Sehun is done ranting, sitting silently, knees jittery and fingers tapping random rhythm against his cup. "I'll show you how to have fun."

Sehun sighs. "Fine, but I warned you. I'm really not a football kind of person."

Luhan beams. "We'll see about that."

Lu Han lets Sehun into his apartment.

"It's top floor," Sehun says, in awe, like he didn't already know. "But you were right, the porter just wouldn't smile. Admit it, you have him scaring your visitors away."

Lu Han laughs and grabs his jacket. "I'll give you a tour another time. We have to go now."

"Wait, what? I thought we're just watching some Manchester United game here on your TV," Sehun says, confused. Lu Han puts on his leather jacket and grabs a cap from his rack, handing another one to Sehun, both of them with Korean flag on it.

"I've never said that," Lu Han laughs, mischievous because he's never said they'd go watch a real, big game either, and he knows it. "And why would I tell you to dress warmly then?" he asks, reaching for two scarfs.

"We're going out to watch some game? At the end of November?" Sehun says, unbelieving, and lets Lu Han wrap one of the scarfs, yet again in national colors and with the Korean flag on it, around his neck.

"It's going to be awesome."

Sehun stares when they get to the gates of the Olympic Stadium and he spots a flier for the game. "Korea against Spain? In November? Just like that? Spain?" he practically shouts it the second time.

"I thought you knew nothing about football," Lu Han laughs because Sehun is, despite himself, excited.

"Hyung," Sehun starts, the corners of his mouth suddenly turned down. "Even I know Spain is good. Jongin is going to kill me."

"Jongin?" Lu Han asks, and he would be jealous that Sehun is thinking of Jongin now, only he's seen Jongin finally swapping numbers with this cute girl who's been coming to Peter Pan, ordering coffee from him and talking to him about his cute drawings on their menu for weeks now.

"He loves football, okay. I made him give me a lesson on rules last night, and I memorized all the names of the typical starting eleven in Manchester so I wouldn't look like a dumbass, but all I know about Spain is that they are good and about Korea that Park Chu-Young exists. That asshole, I bet he guessed we would be watching this game, even if he thought it'd be on TV, so he totally led me on." He's a little frantic, arms flailing around his body as they move inside the stadium and start to climb towards their seats.

"You learned about football from Jongin last night?" Lu Han has to ask, this time. For Lu Han?

Sehun's whole face goes red, and he frowns. "Of course I did," he admits, though, surprising Lu Han a little with how fierce he sounds. "You like it, and I didn't want to sound like a complete idiot, okay? But now Jongin is going to kill me because I am seeing this live and he isn't."

"Next time, if there's a game, he can come along," Lu Han says, patting Sehun's elbow consolingly. This time I wanted it to be just the two of us, he doesn't add. "This time, I'll protect you from his wrath, okay?"

Lu Han watches Sehun huff out, "I can protect myself, hyung," and he laughs. "At least I think I can," Sehun adds after a moment, when they walk out in between the seats, and he sees the stadium already mostly filled up, a huge mass of people in red and white. This time, Lu Han risks ruffling his hair. Sehun swats at him, but a little late this time. "Not a small kid," Sehun says, probably just because it's a habit by now. He's looking around in awe.

They have good seats, and Lu Han brought a blanket because it _is_ cold. It's pretty unusual for a friendly match to be played this late into the year, but he figures that once again he has gotten lucky. He doesn't try to teach Sehun more rules, trusting Jongin on this, and neither does he try teaching him all the player's names. He tells Sehun random trivia as the game gets under way instead. Sehun bounces in his seat next to him, the blanket constantly falling down his knees as he gets swept up by the atmosphere. Lu Han knew that would happen, and as much as he loves football, he loves watching Sehun get really into it--jumping in his seat when Korea gets near the goal or when Spain closes in on them and Sung-Ryong pulls off a wonderful safe--more. Sehun is the first one on his feet, jumping up and down with his hands in the air, when Korea scores, leveling to one both shortly before the end of the first half.

Lu Han laughs, and Sehun shakes him because, "They did it, we did it, yeah, they are so awesome!" and then Sehun hugs him, tight and not brief at all. Even for Lu Han, this is the best game in forever.

They sit down and eat hot dogs during the break. Sehun recounts the game like Lu Han wasn't sitting right there with him the entire time, and Lu Han lets him. When they finish eating, he wraps up Sehun, whose fingers and nose are red from the cold, into a blanket, squishing them close together and wrapping an arm around his waist.

"It is a little cold," he offers in explanation, and Sehun, who's tensed a little, relaxes against him. They watch the second half like that, pretty content on watching Korea lose three to one because it is quite nice watching Spain live, seeing the players pass to each other so precisely and quickly that it feels a little unreal, and Korea puts up a good fight too. Lu Han gets excited, telling Sehun how he wishes he could play like them and how he's tried that trick before, and his heart starts beating faster as he gets more and more vehement about it and then it speeds up again when Sehun wraps an arm around Lu Han's shoulders to pull him close, for warm or just comfort.

"Can I come watch you sometime?" Sehun asks in the end, and Lu Han's jaw unfortunately unhinges again as he fights between laughing and gaping and smiling too widely. "I mean you can't try and make me play, but I kind of want to see you play."

Lu Han nods, hooks their pinkies, and promises to let Sehun just watch and protect anyone who might try to rope him into playing.

"Didn't Minseok-hyung want to go and see this?" Sehun suddenly asks, when the game is over and they're spilling out of the stadium.

"Ah," Lu Han says, pondering how much Minseok will flail about this tomorrow at work. "He went to see it," he settles on at last.

"And you didn't want to go together?" Sehun prods, curious, and Lu Han sighs.

"He was watching it in my private box with his girlfriend," he admits at last.

"You have a private box? Wait, then why did we freeze our asses out there?" Sehun asks, outraged, then looks down, suddenly looking ashamed. "Ah, I'm sorry. I didn't want to sound, uhm, demanding. I'm glad you took me, those were still great seats," he says quickly, not looking at Lu Han, arms squeezing around the blanket he's been carrying for them.

Lu Han hooks his arm under Sehun's elbow, mostly so they don't get separated in the crowd and a little because he wants to hold onto him.

"No, don't be silly. I know what you meant. But I wanted to take you down. I thought it'd be more fun there, freezing, yes, but a much better atmosphere. Plus Minseok is a terrible screamer, so I decided his girlfriend can deal with that," Lu Han says. And I wanted it to be just the two of us, so I left the warmer seats for Minseok who was bringing a girl, he doesn't say, yet again. "I wanted you to have the most fun, Sehunnie," he says instead. "Next time there's a game, we can go try the box, okay?"

Sehun still looks mostly ashamed, so he says nothing but nods. He stays mostly quiet for the rest of the time they get out of the stadium and only plays with the radio when Lu Han drives him home, not saying much either. Lu Han doesn't understand. When they get to Sehun's apartment, Sehun takes a deep breath.

"Hyung," he says, but he seems like he's still trying to look for words. "I. I never want you to, to do me any favors. You take great care of me, but what I mean is. I don't want you to think that I'm ..." he bites his lip in frustration.

"I know, Sehunnie," Lu Han says, because he knows, really. Sehun's never, ever tried to use him, never had an ulterior motive, that much is clear to Lu Han, and that he still worries about it is extremely endearing. It also makes Lu Han like him a little more. Lu Han blinks at the thought of that, and before he can dwell on it, he focuses back on Sehun. "I like taking care of you," he says, reaching up for Sehun's hair again, but Sehun recoils so fast he hits it against the glass of the car window.

"Lu Han-hyung, I'm. I'm not a kid. You don't have to do that either," he says, and he sounds almost angry.

Lu Han's mouth falls into a silent oh, and he goes for Sehun's jittery hand next. He grabs at his fingers and runs his thumb across Sehun's palm.

"I don't see you as a kid, Sehun," Lu Han says, slowly, wondering what will come out of his mouth next. "But friends take care of each other, and you are my very cute friend."  
Sehun doesn't seem to be too convinced, but he sighs, watching their hands where Lu Han still hasn't let go, where his thumb is still working across Sehun's palm in small circles.

"I'm not that cute either. I don't want to be just cute," Sehun mutters. He pulls away completely, opening the car door quickly. "Thank you for this, hyung. It was lots of fun," he says, grimacing in an attempt of a smile, and runs towards the apartment building. Lu Han sighs and wonders what just went wrong.

The end of the year is busy for Lu Han, so he only makes it into Sehun's Peter Pan café once more before Minseok leaves, and Sehun isn't there at the time. Minseok though has already texted him that Sehun is brooding and what did you do wrong, Lu- ge? (。ヘ°)

Lu Han always texts Sehun first now, and Sehun replies, even if his answers are sometimes short and a little lackluster; he's good, school's okay, homework manageable, and there are no emotions readable in between his few lines.

Song Qian will do wonderful as the manager, and the Peter Pan branch has its own management that will look after the café. Lu Han really did come here only to be around his friends, and he wonders how that will change now, if maybe he was just tolerated. He thinks these people like him, but Minseok's last days are weighing down on him. Chanyeol comes out from the back then, as if he knew what Lu Han was thinking, and he smiles at Lu Han, big and warm.

"Hyung, you better not stop coming here, or we might run out of business," he says. "You are my favorite pastry critique, and we all know my baking is what holds this café above water. So I need your valuable input.”

Valuable input on Lu Han's part has so far consisted of praising Chanyeol to the point of making him blush every time he's seen him, with generic opinions like 'this is so good', 'heavenly', and 'it melts on the tongue', so Lu Han can read between these lines.

He smiles back. "I wouldn't want to leave you hanging," he says, and Chanyeol runs off before his next batch of muffins burns.

Just when Lu Han is thinking of taking some drastic measures, Sehun texts him, three nights after Minseok goes back to his own café.

(*≧▽≦) I can actually take some teaching electives next semester. What do I do? What do I do? (~_~;) ヾ(@^▽^@)ノ

Lu Han feels lighter right away. (´⊙ω⊙`)！You'll figure it out Sehunnie. You've been thinking about this for a long time and you have a vision. You'll make the best decision. I'm cheering for you!

Sehun tries to gauge Lu Han's opinion on the choices he has, but this time Lu Han is more careful with giving it. He wants this to be Sehun's decision, but he most of all wants Sehun to see that whatever he decides Lu Han will believe in him, will respect his choices. Sehun isn't a kid that needs guiding, and Lu Han knows this, but he might have come across a bit overbearing and that needs to stop. He does not keep pet boys, after all.

However, the ice is broken after that, and the barrage of messages, which drive Junmyeon crazy because Lu Han refuses to turn off the soft ping notifications, return in full force. So do Chanyeol's pastry deliveries, often without picture preview, just a surprise that always lifts Lu Han's mood, even if they now sadly come with no coffee. Lu Han just settles back for the coffee from his secretary whether made at the company or delivered.

The next time Lu Han goes to the now Minseok-less Peter Pan café, he knows there should be an open mike night. He sadly misses it all again, not able to get out of the office sooner, so all he sees is Baekhyun packing up the sound system yet again. He smiles at Krystal, who's slowly getting ready to close down, trying to boss Chanyeol around. Chanyeol, on his part, is running around Baekhyun in circles and talking to him in an excited voice instead of cleaning tables.

"Sehun's in the back, washing dishes," Krystal says right away, and Lu Han feigns confusion at why she would assume he wanted to know that.

"You don't want to talk to me, then?" he asks, raising an eyebrow playfully, and she just smirks at him.

"Okay then, what can I do for you while you wait for your pet boy to finish his shift?" she asks, and Lu Han hisses at her.

"He's not my pet boy. Where did you get that?" Lu Han starts whispering. "Actually don't answer that. I'm killing Minseok. Just. You don't call Sehun that to his face, do you?" he asks, and Krystal preens, clearly pleased with how flustered she got Lu Han. But she takes pity on him, and shakes her head.

"No, I don't, so calm down. Minseok just said to call him that if you ever tried to act all bossy," she laughs. Lu Han really is going to kill him. "Anyway, do you want a coffee?" she asks, and Lu Han ends up nodding. Krystal turns around to make it, and Chanyeol bounces towards him. He reaches for one of the cupcakes, raspberry this time, and hands it to Lu Han.

"You should come too, hyung," he says cheerfully, pointing towards where Baekhyun is sweet talking some girls, handing fliers to anyone who would take one. "We have a concert coming up. A new venue, a big one. It'll be awesome, I promise."

Lu Han has wanted to see Chanyeol play for a long time now. "Yeah, I'll try," he says, grabbing a flier from Baekhyun who bounces over.

"Chanyeol, why did you ask him, you are so stupid!" he says though, reaching up to pull at Chanyeol's ear. "Sehun had it all planned," he chides, and Chanyeol suddenly looks very apologetic, hand flying to his mouth. "Anyway, hyung, just pretend you aren't already invited," Baekhyun says, turning to Lu Han and snagging the flier back from him. Make sure you're free three nights from now though, in case Sehun keeps being an idiot and doesn't ask in time."

Lu Han doesn't get to ask more, Baekhyun bouncing back to his sound equipment, and Krystal, having finished Lu Han's coffee, coming after Chanyeol, so that he gets around to cleaning. Lu Han watches them, eating his cupcake and drinking his coffee, still damn good, clearly Minseok's teaching. Eventually Sehun comes from the back, and after a moment where he stays rooted to his spot in the door frame, the both of them just looking at each other a little uncertainly, he smiles, his eyes almost disappearing. Lu Han relaxes completely. He hasn't realized just how much he has missed Sehun in that time they haven't seen each other, not until the moment Sehun walks towards him, posture straight and head held high, and Lu Han's whole body turns towards him.

"Hi, Sehunnie," he says, hands itching to touch so much.

"Hello hyung," Sehun greets, grabbing a full tray from Chanyeol and bringing it towards the dishwasher, loading the mugs and plates that fit in it. "Did you come late on purpose?" he asks, mouth pulling into a small smirk. "I bet all that talk about how good you are at singing DBSK songs is just bragging. Admit it, you didn't want to embarrass yourself."

Lu Han laughs. "Do you want me to serenade you, Sehunnie?" he asks. "I can, you know, if you ask nicely. Besides it's you who claims you are never going to karaoke with me."

"That's because I can't sing and I am not afraid to say it," Sehun says back. "I'll ask you to sing for me some other time, though. When there'll be a bigger audience," Sehun assures him.

"Ask away, I am a brave man," Lu Han says, puffing out his chest in exaggeration, and Sehun's eyes slide down to where Lu Han's shirt stretches over it. He catches himself soon though, looks away, and speeds up with the dishes.

"Let's grab something to eat after this," he says, head stuck somewhere beneath the counter, and Lu Han agrees, wondering where he should bring Sehun so that he can properly feed him after a relatively long break in which Sehun probably lived off ramyeon.

It's Sehun who choses the food for them, surprising Lu Han by guiding him to a hot pot restaurant. "I'm paying this time too," he says, and Lu Han stops the knee jerk reaction to argue. They eat the hot soup and fall back into their patterns, and Sehun recalls how Jongin basically didn't let him sleep after the football match.

"I had to tell him what happened in the game in absolute details, and then he started correcting me because of course he watched it on TV. It was so frustrating," he says, and the way his expression turns sour at the memory makes Lu Han laugh. He doesn't realize until much later, that sometimes between his too loud and ugly laughter and Sehun's exasperated sighs and snickers, their ankles tangled under the table.

When he does, it's like he's brought this elephant into the room with the twitch of his shin that makes Sehun look up. He clears his throat and tries to pull his legs back, but Lu Han recovers quickly, keeping at least one of Sehun's ankles between his feet with force. Neither of them say anything, and Lu Han just goes for another piece of meat from their pot.

"Hyung," Sehun says when Lu Han starts to chew. "I wanted to ask you to go to Chanyeol and Baekhyun's band concert this Friday," he says. He's not looking at Lu Han, instead moving more vegetables and meat into the pot, tongue peeking out from between his teeth as he concentrates. "I mean you wanted to see Chanyeol play, right? So you should come with me," he says, more resolutely.

"Oh, sure," Lu Han coughs a little. "What concert is this?" he asks, remembering that he's not supposed to know.

"It's this big venue, here in Hongdae. It should be really cool. They play mostly rockish music. It's nothing too extreme I promise," Sehun says, still not looking up. "So will you go? With me?" he adds, and finally looks up.

Sehun's face might be blank, but in his eyes Lu Han reads the uncertainty, like Lu Han is actually capable of saying no to Sehun. It makes Lu Han wonder, what exactly Sehun is asking.

"Of course, I'll go," he says, smiling. "What time should I pick you up?" he asks, and Sehun shakes his head.

"No, no, I'm picking you up, but we're taking the metro because, hyung, it's a bar, and we're going to drink, and so there will be no driving. But I'm picking you up. At your place, or at work?" he asks, and this time there's no room for argument.

"My place. If anything changes I'll text you, but I'd want to change, so my place.”

Sehun nods, and Lu Han watches him exhale, long and relieved, his shoulders relaxing. "Here, have some meat," he says, putting a piece on Lu Han's plate, and he smiles. Lu Han is so terribly charmed.

Sehun is wearing a coat, so Lu Han can't tell just how dressed up he is, but his hair is styled and Lu Han could swear he sees a smudge of eyeliner. He smells good, but that's not news, and he smiles as he comes up to Lu Han, who's already waiting outside because he ran away from his office too soon to prevent any last minute visits and disasters.

"You look good, hyung," Sehun says, and Lu Han starts wondering, yet again, if maybe this is a date. He wants it to be, if he's really honest with himself, but then Sehun might just be trying to prove his point of being equal. Lu Han may be an expert in many things, but reading the signs when it comes to possible love interests isn't one of them. He always had to have it spelled out for him, really.

"You, too," he says now, and then Sehun is grabbing his wrist and dragging him to the nearest metro station. "Let's get out of this cold," he's saying.

 

The club really is one of the biggest in the area, and they leave their coats in a makeshift storage set up by the entrance. Sehun's t-shirt has a really deep cut, and Lu Han wants to run his fingers along his collarbones, over the curve of his long neck, and down towards his shoulder blades. He feels silly in his comics t-shirt, but he figured this was a rock concert, and it has kind of nostalgic value and the power of an armor. Only if Sehun wasn't stripping it away too fast.

Sehun mentioned on the way here that others would be here, Jongin and Krystal and even Song Qian and Amber and Tao, who are new staff at Peter Pan, but right now Sehun doesn't seem too intent on looking for them. He leads Lu Han to the bar, and orders beers for them. They drink to the success of the concert, and then Sehun is dragging him again, this time closer to the stage, into the growing crowd gathering there. They get pressed together, and Sehun ends up pushing Lu Han in front of him, his hands around Lu Han's hips to guide him, as he steadily moves forward.

"Perfect," he mutters in the end, right into Lu Han's ear, when they are in the middle of what is probably normally a dance floor, not completely under the stage, just comfortable distance so that they don't have to crane their necks up too much. It is a perfect spot, but Lu Han is more focused on the goosebumps Sehun's breath left in its wake. Sehun doesn't let go of him, his hands resting lightly over the waistband of Lu Han's jeans, and when the crowd around them moves in a wave of excitement, they get pressed together, Sehun's chest against Lu Han's back. They fit like this rather nicely, and Lu Han doesn't mind at all that Sehun is taller now, when his head rests against Sehun's shoulder and Sehun's thumbs start rubbing circles into Lu Han's sides.

"They must be pretty popular," Lu Han shouts, croaks a little, because the sudden intimacy is overwhelming, no matter what the excuse.

"Hmmm," Sehun hums, his voice low and maybe a little shaky. Lu Han might just be imagining it. "They are, but this club also has a name for good live music, so lots of people come just for that, even if they don't know the band. Getting a gig here is a big deal for Chanyeol." Lu Han nods, and that's when the lights above the audience dim completely and a drummer comes out to sit behind his set. He counts down the beat with his drumstick, and the rest of the band emerges from the dark. The crowd moves closer again, and the first tones of the bass guitar, Chanyeol's voice greeting everyone, have the room in a frenzy.

Chanyeol's band is great, and Baekhyun is an amazing singer. His voice is one that Lu Han thinks he would remember and recognize, and they soar through their songs, confident and strong. Sehun bounces behind him, and Lu Han dances too, soon swept up by the crowd's excitement and his own love for music. They disentangle a little, but the entire time Sehun keeps an arm around Lu Han's waist or around his shoulders, no matter how much he jumps up and down to the fast paced songs.

When the crowd finally pushes enough for Sehun's arm to slip away from Lu Han's shoulder, it's Lu Han who reaches for him, dragging Sehun back and close by his t-shirt that stretches and reveals a flash of Sehun's chest, flushed and glistening with sweat in the ever changing lights of the club. Lu Han wraps his hand around Sehun's waist now, jumping to the beat with him, and gripping his hip so they don't get split up again. Sehun turns to him then, eyes shining and tongue darting out to lick his dry lips, and Lu Han definitely throws caution to the wind. When the pace of the concert slows down in the middle section, Baekhyun belting out heartfelt ballads, Sehun pulls Lu Han against his chest again. They still dance, slower rocking of their bodies, Sehun's hands almost possessive around Lu Han's middle. He's humming at times, along with Baekhyun, low and right into Lu Han's ear, and Lu Han wonders how it would feel to just turn around and kiss Sehun right there and then.

Before he can, the music turns faster and more intense again, and soon they are jumping and shouting for an encore. Lu Han is happy for Chanyeol, and he really wants more, but a big part of him just doesn't want the concert to end because that might mean Sehun pulling away, going for more drinks and finding their friends. It might mean Lu Han will have to share, and Lu Han doesn't want that, not yet. Two songs later, the concert is definitely over, but Sehun is still draped over Lu Han's back the way he's maneuvered him for the last heartfelt ballad, even as the lights get a little brighter and a fast dance track comes on.

"They're so good," Lu Han says because staying silent feels stifling now, and Sehun only hums into his neck. "Should we go find them and say hello?" Lu Han continues, and he feels Sehun shaking his head, his hair brushing against Lu Han's cheek where Sehun is leaning into him, head almost dropped on Lu Han's shoulder.

"I don't want to move yet, hyung," Sehun says at last. Lu Han finds Sehun's fingers on his stomach, playing with them.

"Sehunnie," he says, gentle, but lets Sehun rock them halfheartedly into the rhythm of one more track. Just as the rhythm changes, someone barrels into their sides, and when they get their footing again, Jongin is staring at them, wild eyed, sweaty and excited, pulling Chanyeol and Baekhyun behind him.

"You're here, Sehun, god I thought you two missed it," he shouts, and Sehun glowers at him a little. "Let's get drinks; we have to celebrate. You guys were awesome," he says to Chanyeol and Baekhyun, and he's dragging everyone to the bar.

Lu Han insists on buying this round, calling in his hyung privileges, and they all cheer for him too. But after that, it's Sehun who keeps paying for his beers as Lu Han drinks more than he has in ages, letting himself be dulled by alcohol and loud music, watching Sehun through heavy lidded eyes, smiling at him, and probably looking very, very silly. They dance again, but with friends around them, Sehun is more careful about how he touches Lu Han. It leaves Lu Han dissatisfied and a little cranky. When they stumble out of the bar, Jongin is barely standing, and he automatically leans on Sehun, demanding to be taken home. Sehun tries to shake him off, but Jongin latches and Lu Han just smiles.

"Let's catch a taxi for you two," he says, reasoning that he should be the bigger man here. Sehun clearly wanted to finish his stint today by "taking" Lu Han home, and Lu Han would absolutely not object, but Jongin needs it much more. Lu Han is still standing and swaying only a little.

They easily flag a taxi down, just down the road from the club, and Jongin slides into the taxi first.

Lu Han grabs at Sehun's wrist before he can follow. "Thanks for taking me tonight," he says, looking into Sehun's eyes.

Sehun nods, clearly not in a hurry to get into the taxi. "I really wanted to--" he starts to say.

"Sehun, hurry up, I'm freezing," Jongin croons from inside, interrupting. Sehun looks down at where Lu Han's fingers are tight around his wrist and gulps. Lu Han sees his Adam apple moving because Sehun hadn't bothered to button up his coat.

"Go," Lu Han says, but doesn't let go. Instead, he leans up and, on an impulse, he whispers right into Sehun's ear, "Let's do this again, it's my turn to take you out." Lu Han brushes his lips against Sehun's neck entirely on purpose as he pulls back and hopes that Sehun understands.

Lu Han spends the first part of his weekend mildly hungover, and shuffling around his apartment. He drinks tea, watches Seoul move beneath him, and thinks about his night out with Sehun, about the phantom touch he feels on his hipbones and the memory of warm skin against his lips, so brief and unsatisfying. He indulges himself, getting lost in his thoughts for once, carding through the images of Sehun, the traces of him in Lu Han's life, wants and reality all mixed together. Sehun doesn't text or call, and Lu Han lets it be, figuring Sehun might be nursing not only his own but also Jongin's hangover, and probably has tons of school work and maybe a shift at Peter Pan.

The image of Sehun up and about forces Lu Han into action too, and he finds himself spreading printed-out budgets around his laptop in his living room and diving into the final checks of financial plans for the next year that have been redone one too many times and that have been driving Junmyeon crazy. His CFO claimed that he had it under control, and Lu Han knows he is much more competent to do this, his company growing so very complex over the last three years, but he dives in anyway, determined not to lose grasp of his own business. He doesn't want things like this to go over his head.

Lu Han falls asleep sitting on the floor, leaning against the back of his couch, with papers in a complete mess around him. Sunday finds him progressively more frantic, only able to pull on random threads of the complicated riddle in front of him. It leaves him frustrated, mostly with himself, that he let it get this way, that he didn't involve himself more in the process of planning and now is struggling for air between many elusive entries of one too many budgets. He doesn't sleep at all, his phone forgotten, battery dead, and comes to work looking worse than Junmyeon on Monday, haggard and tired, eyes puffy with lack of sleep and tie crooked because he lost patience with it.

"Call Junmyeon for me," he says to his secretary and holes himself up in his office. He loosens his tie completely and folds his sleeves up over his elbows before pulling out his notes from home. Junmyeon arrives, along with coffee and some croissants, initiative of his secretary who's known Lu Han long enough to realize he hasn't eaten or slept for a while now. The coffee is lackluster at best, and the croissants sit on Lu Han's desk untouched. He and Junmyeon move to the bigger conference table in the furthest corner of Lu Han's office and proceed to confuse themselves even more. Lu Han asks million of questions and manages to freak Junmyeon out with some of them too as they pore over the plans together.

"You always do this to me," Junmyeon sighs, sometime around seven that evening, rubbing at his temples, then running his hand through his already messy hair. "You're lucky I like you, and that you actually always end up doing that magic of yours where you turn everything upside down so that it makes much more sense than before, or else I would quit on you already. Actually, I still want to quit on you at least once a month." He scrunches his face in discontent.

Lu Han leans his cheek on the stash of paper on the table beneath him. "I'm glad you like me. It's your best quality, Junmyeon."

Junmyeon laughs and looks, absolutely baffled, at the papers in front of them, red marks all over them and huge list of notes in his computer. "It was a good plan before, you know," he says, pouty.

"I didn't say it wasn't," Lu Han concedes. "It was a wonderful plan before."

"Will you ever not stick your nose where you shouldn't have to anymore?" Junmyeon asks. "I mean, I thought you finally found something better to do with your time than involving yourself in every mundane job in this company. It's enough that we have you for the big ideas and surrealistic dreams that you always manage to make come true, you know."

Lu Han lifts his cheek off the table, tilting his head in question. "Something better?"

"Yes, I was sure you're dating actually, that you finally fell in love with a person not a revolutionary idea. I mean, your phone was always chiming and you were texting like a teenager on a mission to ruin his parent's cell phone budget. Which reminds me, your phone is dead silent today, did you fight?"

Lu Han stares. "I'm not dating anyone," he says. He might want to though, and suddenly he's scrambling up, looking for his phone. He didn't fight with Sehun either. Now that he's finally emerging from the rows of numbers and lists of needed budget items, it's like he's been under water, and with his next inhale, there's a flash of Sehun's bright eyes and his tongue licking his lips in a club on Friday night. "Maybe there is someone, but we're not dating and we didn't fight, I just..." Lu Han trails off, finally locating his phone in his work suitcase and staring at the dead device.

"You just let yourself be consumed by work again," Junmyeon sighs. Lu Han plugs his phone into its charger and watches it slowly load back to life. "You need to introduce me sometime. I'm kind of curious."

"I have to give that proper consideration," Lu Han mumbles, smirking up at Junmyeon. "Don't want you to go and give him weird ideas about me."

Junmyeon laughs. "Okay. I think I need fresh air." He rubs at his face again. "And maybe a good night's sleep. It's not like I didn't spend all weekend on this, too. Do you mind if I come and collect this tomorrow?"

Lu Han's phone finally registers signal again and five new messages and three missed calls from Sehun, among other notifications that he barely notices, blink at him. "Yeah, yeah, go take your beauty rest," he says, waving Junmyeon off.

"Maybe you should consider it, too," Junmyeon shots back, collecting his suit jacket and leaving.

Lu Han collapses into his chair once Junmyeon is gone. The exhaustion sets heavy in his bones, and he feels his stomach twist as his brain finally registers the lack of food and sleep. He doesn't even read Sehun's messages before texting him.

Phone was dead for two days. In the office. (×_×;）I don't think I can even get myself home.

He stares at the message after he's sent it, feeling like none of what he's written was all that important.

Wish I could see you, he sends after a moment.

Lu Han wakes up to fingers carding through his hair. He's fallen asleep in his desk chair, head pillowed on his arms on the desk, and it takes him a while to come up from the sleepy haze enough to realize that _there are someone's fingers running through his hair._ He stirs, head too heavy as he turns it to the side where he feels someone's presence.

"Lu Han-hyung," Sehun mutters, and he's looking down at Lu Han with soft eyes, expression serious. His fingers slow down, barely moving now, but he doesn't pull his hand away. "Are you okay?" Sehun asks, worried, and Lu Han tries to smile.

"Hmmm,” he says, closing his eyes again, just taking in the quiet relaxed atmosphere, the soothing hand in his hair, the smell of fresh coffee and chocolate in the air. Coffee. Chocolate. Lu Han blinks, forcing his eyes open again. Sehun has smelled of both coffee and chocolate before, as a result of meeting with Lu Han after his shifts in Peter Pan, but now the aroma is much stronger.

"I brought coffee and chocolate bread from Chanyeol," Sehun says, as if reading his mind. "Do you think you could have some?"

"The coffee smells so good," Lu Han mumbles, and tries to push himself up. He regrets it when his moving results in Sehun dropping his hand from his hair.

Sehun pushes the cup and the paper bag with pastries towards Lu Han and continues to watch him. He isn't frowning at the mess on Lu Han's table or gaping in awe at the view from Lu Han's office, as Lu Han once imagined he might, instead he is focused on Lu Han, sizing him up as if tallying the damage.

"Look at you taking care of me so well," Lu Han says, absentmindedly, wrapping his fingers around the cup of coffee.

Sehun straightens up. "You know I could. Sometimes. I'm not ... I don't have your capacity I guess, but I could. If you let me," he says, watching Lu Han carefully.

"Look," Lu Han says, pulling at Sehun so that he sits on the edge of Lu Han's desk, closer to Lu Han like this. "I know. You've been telling me for ages now, showing me too, that you don't need me babying you, and I. I know, okay. I never thought anything else, either. I ruffle your hair and tickle you and drag you around because I want to. Because I want to touch you all the time, Sehun, and there's nothing innocent or brotherly about the way I want that." He looks down at his cup of coffee. "I just." He reaches out and touches Sehun's thigh.

Sehun bites his lip, and nods his head toward the coffee. "Drink your coffee, hyung. It took me forever, but I think I've finally got it right," he says, and Lu Han blinks, finally lifting the cup towards his lips. It's Minseok's taste that rolls over his tongue, down to the detail, rich and confident and just the right side of bitter. Only it's Sehun who's made this, and that makes this coffee even better. Lu Han's eyes widen.

"This is..." he looks up. "I can't believe this."

Sehun laughs at him a little, gleeful, his fingers now running over the knuckles of Lu Han's hand on his thigh. "I had very good motivation. I figured if there's a way you'd want to keep me," he starts to say, looking at their hands. "I realize it's silly, but I want to find ways to take care of you, too."

Lu Han's heart swells. He takes one more sip of his coffee but gulps it down quickly, rising to his feet and stepping between Sehun's thighs that fall more open to let him close.

"Sehunnie," he mutters, both of his hands holding onto Sehun's thighs now, and Sehun's arms loop around his neck. Sehun smiles at him, eyes moving around his face, frowning when they linger on Lu Han's eye bags before they move to watch Lu Han's lips move. "I like you," Lu Han says, surprising even himself with how easily he does it. "I like you so much. And now that you have demonstrated mad coffee-making skills, I need to make good on my promise of not letting you go.”

Sehun makes a noise somewhere between a chuckle and a whine. "Hyung, you sound so--” He can't find the words.

"Manly?" Lu Han suggests, leaning close and whispering it against Sehun's lips. "Tell me you like me too," he demands.

Sehun closes his eyes, one hand sliding into Lu Han's hair again. "I might even love you," he says. It's quiet, more of a breath against Lu Han's lips, but Lu Han hears it, and he finally kisses Sehun.

Their first kiss is a slow one, press of lips and breath held in, until Sehun's hand in Lu Han's hair closes around handful of it and he tilts Lu Han's head just like that. Sehun catches Lu Han's lower lip between his own then, and Lu Han slumps into him more, hands sliding down Sehun's thighs and then up again.

"Hyung," Sehun murmurs, pulling back just a little before he runs his other hand down Luhan's neck, then cups his jaw. The next kiss is deeper, Sehun's tongue flicking out into the corner of Lu Han's mouth and Lu Han opening it, sucking Sehun's tongue in and gripping Sehun where his thighs meet his hips. The third and fourth kisses are hazy, Sehun whimpering into Lu Han's mouth and letting Lu Han lick into his mouth in turn, letting him swipe his tongue behind Sehun's teeth and taste him.

Lu Han's teeth catch on Sehun's thin lip and he pulls at it, then runs his tongue against the bite right after they take a short breath. Sehun is wrapped around Lu Han by now, and Lu Han is only standing up because Sehun's long legs and arms around his body keep him so. Lu Han shivers, the tremor wrecking through him when Sehun's hand runs down his spine, and Sehun pulls back for more than a second this time. He rakes his fingers through the mess of Lu Han's hair again, swiping it out of his eyes and forehead.

"You should go home and sleep, hyung," he says. His legs are still hooked over Lu Han's thighs, but his arms are soft and gentle again, soothing.

"I want to keep kissing you," Lu Han admits, but he lets his head drop onto Sehun's shoulder.

"Let's get you to bed first," Sehun mumbles into his hair. Lu Han chuckles.

"I'm _not_ going to stop you from that," he mutters, and Sehun snorts.

"Hyung, you'll be lucky if you don't fall asleep before you get your socks off."

"At least they're not mismatched. I think," Lu Han muses.

Laughing, Sehun finally pushes them apart. "Let's go. I'll drive," he says, and Lu Han follows without protest.

Later that night, Sehun curls up on top of the blankets in Lu Han's bed with him, their foreheads pressed together. He lets Lu Han ruffle his hair then card through them to fix it. Lu Han has his eyes closed, but his hands wander, skating over Sehun's collarbones, over the curve of Sehun's neck, slipping them under his t-shirt and counting his vertebrae. Sehun sighs and shivers when Lu Han presses his fingers into his side, but he doesn't flinch away, doesn't stop Lu Han, not even when he sets to trace the ridge of Sehun's ear over and over again.

"Just sleep, hyung," he mutters.

Lu Han throws a leg over Sehun's hip. "Take me out for coffee in the morning," he says, feeling himself drift away at last.

"Why would I do that when I can just make it for you?" Sehun asks, hand sliding up Lu Han's thigh and staying there so that he keeps Lu Han's leg in place.

"Want to hold your hand on the way there," Lu Han murmurs.

Sehun's breath hitches, and Lu Han wonders if it's only because he has just swiped his fingers under his chin. "Fine," he says, the hand on Lu Han's thighs gripping. Lu Han finally slips into sleep, thinking about the taste of good coffee, sweet cupcakes and Sehun's lips.

  
  
.  
and  
.  
a  
.  
bonus

  


Luhan can't believe just how lucky he's gotten once again. Or how royally lucky he's about to get, Minseok might point out if he were here. He, however, is not here to make fun of Lu Han, which Lu Han is really glad about because right now he's leaning on his elbows, stretched out on his bed with Sehun spread out all nicely beneath him, gloriously naked, his skin pink from pleasure and Lu Han's kisses. He's eying Lu Han rather appreciatively, and his hands are gripping on Lu Han's hips as they rock together. And Lu Han thinks this is finally, finally happening.

In the past month there has been lots of cuddling and groping. There was that time they ground against each other like teenagers and came in their pants in the entry way of Sehun's apartment in what Lu Han thinks might have been an attempt at distraction from the tiny cluttered space the first time Lu Han actually got to see the inside of it. There's been a couple of hand jobs and that one blow job when Sehun turned up in Lu Han's office, claiming his class got canceled, and climbed underneath Lu Han's desk, and Lu Han didn't know what had hit him. But this, right now, feels much bigger, feels so perfect.

It's not like Lu Han's learned to be all proactive in his relationship overnight. His sleepy self might have rushed that evening in his office when he finally told Sehun how much he wanted him, but the next morning they went back to taking it excruciatingly slow and to being slightly awkward at times because Lu Han hasn't been this smitten in ages, if ever, and Sehun, knowing now for sure how much Lu Han liked him, became a menace, flirting outrageously, becoming touchy beyond belief and teasing excessively. Lu Han really should have known better.

Tonight, though, Sehun came to see him and he didn't seem in the mood to tease at all. He kissed Lu Han in his kitchen instead of greeting, long and deep and thorough, handed him his coffee and cake, and announced that he was off to take a shower to get himself nice and clean inside out. Lu Han's coffee ended up mostly on his shirt and the floor in his kitchen, so when Sehun came out, in just his jeans and with his hair dripping wet, and sent Lu Han to clean up too, he didn't even protest.

So really, right now, with Sehun sucking a bruise into Lu Han's collarbone as Lu Han slips his thigh between Sehun's legs and grinds against his hip, cock hard and aching, is quite a logical turn of events. It's also a really wonderful one, and Lu Han moans and pulls Sehun off his neck by his hair to kiss him again, hungrily licking into his mouth and swallowing Sehun's whimpers. Sehun's hands slide to Lu Han's ass, nails digging into it as he drags him closer, and Lu Han wonders how much Sehun would judge him if he came, just from this, just from the drag of Sehun's skin against his cock, from the feel of Sehun's hands on him, and the excitement of Sehun's tongue sliding against his own.

"Hyung," Sehun whines, pulling Lu Han away from his mouth, "stop, stop, ah just, hyung, stop." Still Sehun bucks his hips up one more time, and it's him who's coming, warm and sticky between them. "Fuck," he says, his body shuddering as Lu Han quickly reaches between them and rubs over the head of Sehun's cock until Sehun's whining and swatting his hands away. He drops against the sheets, his limbs falling off Lu Han and looking like they're made of jelly. "That's not what I had in mind," he mutters, making Lu Han laugh.

"Well, if you tell me what you did have in mind, maybe we could still manage," he says, sitting back up on his heels and rubbing circles into Sehun's thighs. His own cock is still painfully hard, but he takes deep breaths and lets Sehun catch his own a little. He has a feeling it'd be worth waiting.

Sehun snorts, and reaches up to swipe at a bit of his come from Lu Han's chest. He wipes it on the sheets, and Lu Han scrunches his nose a little, but then focuses back on the task at hand. "Sehunnie, what did you have in mind?" he asks again, voice purposefully low and quiet.

"I wanted you to fuck me, hyung. I thought that much was obvious," Sehun says exasperatedly, like it's such a bad thing Lu Han made him come before any of that happened. Lu Han feels his own cock twitch.

"Ah, I think that can still be arranged," he says, and slides away from Sehun and towards his bed side table. He reaches inside and pulls out the tube of lube he keeps there. He blanches as he looks down at it. Fuck, he's completely forgotten about this. But he doesn't have any other supplies stashed in here right now, something he might need to remedy soon, so he quickly moves back to sit between Sehun's legs. Sehun has spread them more, knees slightly bent, in the time Lu Han was gone. He looks up at Lu Han, eyes half closed and tongue peeking out, chest blotched with red and splatters of come across his stomach, and Lu Han is opening the lube so fast he drops the bottle. Sehun chuckles, reaching for it and bringing it up for inspection. And then he's laughing loudly, his entire body shaking with it.

" _Raspberry_ ," he gets out, snorting for good measure.

"What?" Lu Han says, crossing his hands over his naked chest. "Would strawberry be better?" he asks. It's not like he would have bought flavored lube in the past, but then Minseok mentioned that wretched incident and he kept thinking of it and of Sehun, and he ended up making a trip to the store. Only he's found out he actually prefers raspberry, and if he's really honest with himself, he can't wait to find out how it will work out along the taste of Sehun's skin.

"Oh my, someone help me, hyung, you're too cute," Sehun hides his face in his fingers, dropping the lube on his stomach.

"I am not cute! We've been over this. " Lu Han pinches the inside of Sehun's thigh and almost gets distracted by the way red spreads under the skin there. "I'm about to fuck you, Sehunnie, how is that cute?"

Sehun is still chuckling, no matter how much he tries to calm down. "And raspberry lube is just an extension of your manliness, I get it," he says, managing a wink. But he lifts up a bit, his hands settling low on Lu Han's hips. "Please hyung, I still want you to fuck me even if you are the cutest person that has ever cuted," he says, and his thumbs rub over Lu Han's underbelly.

Lu Han tries to glower. He grabs the lube again though, and opens it, coating his fingers. Sehun drops back into the pillows.

"We'll see how long that smirk of your lasts," he says, and slides down the bed. He palms Sehun's soft cock, rolls his balls between his fingers, and feels smug at the way Sehun's breath hitches. He brushes the soft skin behind Sehun's balls and starts teasing him, rubbing circles into the puckered skin. He dips his head low, running his tongue over the come drying on Sehun's stomach, and Sehun swears. Lu Han keeps sucking at the patches of his skin, cleaning it, and enjoying the way Sehun's stomach muscles tremble against his lips. His fingers push and probe a little, but he doesn't push inside until Sehun's stomach is clean and glistening with his own saliva.

"There, that's better," he praises.

Sehun's eyes are serious again as he looks down at Lu Han, and his cock is half hard. "Fuck," he mutters, when Lu Han's finger finally pushes inside, just a little. Lu Han uses his other hand to spread more lube around then leans down to suck another bruise into Sehun's thigh as he slowly presses his finger deeper. Sehun's thighs tense, and Lu Han noses against the bitten skin. He can smell the raspberries, and Sehun's already better than he could have ever imagined, whimpering and twisting sheets in his fists and letting Lu Han do whatever he wants. Lu Han pulls his finger all the way out.

"Turn around," he mutters, and Sehun is flopping onto his stomach so fast Lu Han has to laugh. He folds his knees underneath himself all on his own, and Lu Han spreads his ass cheeks, watching the lube slide down the crack. "So eager," he comments, and Sehun groans into the pillow.

"Hyung, please," he whispers. Lu Han isn't planning on hurrying up though. He kisses the mole on the small of Sehun's back and continues kissing down from it. He pushes one finger inside Sehun again, twisting it a little and moving it in and out, almost all the way. He hooks it around the rim, and Sehun moans. Luhan's tongue swipes down and around the finger, and Sehun tenses.

"Relax," Lu Han whispers. Sehun shudders from the way it must feel. Lu Han's tongue dips inside.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck," Lu Han hears Sehun chanting, and he pushes another finger in, slowly, tongue licking on the outside of the rim until his fingers slide in easier. He scissors them then, tongue sliding between them again, flicking in and out of Sehun, and Sehun's pushing back against it, voice muffled by Lu Han's sheets, words incomprehensible.

It's all such a huge turn on, the way Sehun tastes, the way his muscles flutter around Lu Han's fingers and his tongue, and Lu Han palms himself as he sits back on his heels, pushing one more finger inside Sehun and twisting his wrist. He crooks his fingers every time he presses them as deep as they would go, and he smirks when Sehun moans loudly and brokenly the next time he does it and finds Sehun's prostate.

"Hyung, please please," Sehun pleads, and his voice is wracked. Lu Han knows he's close and wonders if he should just let him come again. But he doesn't think he could wait much longer himself, his own cock twitching every time Sehun pushes back against his fingers, so when Sehun pleads for him to, "stop, fuck, stop, stop," this time, he does.

He drapes himself over Sehun's broad back, biting at the crook of his neck and tilting his head a little so he can kiss the corner of his mouth. Sehun whimpers, and Lu Han laughs a little into the sloppy kiss. "See, it's not that bad," he reasons, and Sehun pushes his ass against where Lu Han's cock is pressing between his ass cheeks.

"Just fuck me already, hyung," he says, and Lu Han scrambles up, thighs sliding underneath Sehun's. He pulls at his cock one, two more times, lubing himself up, before he presses its head against Sehun. "Yes," Sehun encourages, and Lu Han presses in, slowly, holding Sehun's ass cheek apart until he's deep inside Sehun.

It feels tight and hot, and Lu Han bends forward, just breathing for a moment. Sehun's heaving beneath him, and Lu Han grabs a handful of his hair and wraps his other hand around Sehun's chest.

"Up," he mutters, pulling Sehun so that he's sitting in his lap, and Sehun groans, sinking even lower on Lu Han's cock. "It's your call," Lu Han mutters into his ear, sucks at the lobe, and Sehun puts his palms on the sheets in front of himself, back bent, and he rocks back. They both moan, and Lu Han holds onto Sehun's hips, Sehun rolling them a few more times then sliding up properly.  
  
"So good," Lu Han mutters, mouthing at Sehun's back, and Sehun seems to keen at the praise, lifting up and falling down faster. Lu Han tries to meet him, but it's hard like this so he just pulls at Sehun's hips, helping him and enjoying the way Sehun's muscles squeeze around him. Sehun gets frantic soon, and Lu Han knows he's close. He moves his hand around Sehun's waist and splays his palm against Sehun's trembling stomach. He lifts it higher and twists Sehun's left nipple then slides it down to his cock. Sehun hiccups when Lu Han wraps his fingers around it again and starts pulling. He straightens up, head thrown back and onto Lu Han's shoulder. Lu Han latches his mouth to Sehun's neck, muttering how good Sehun is for him between bites and licks, and Sehun keeps rolling his hips, shaky and with no rhythm until he comes again.

Lu Han keeps the circle of his fingers tight around Sehun's cock, and only when Sehun squirms, he lets go and pushes him down again, hips thrusting forward. Sehun moans, voice hoarse, and clenches around Lu Han's cock on purpose. Lu Han's hips jerk forwards, fast and desperate, chasing his orgasm now, pressing Sehun into the sheets, both of Lu Han's hands on the small of Sehun's back. He pulls out when he feels himself tipping over, sliding his cock shallowly between Sehun's ass cheeks again, and he comes too, lips pressed into Sehun's ribs and shuddering.

He takes a moment, just sliding his palms up and down Sehun's back, and Sehun lets him, both of them taking deep breaths. When Lu Han finally feels like he can move again, he rolls off the side of the bed and wobbles into the bathroom for a towel. He cleans Sehun up, and Sehun rolls onto his back. His eyes are closed, and he groans while Lu Han wipes his stomach too.

"Everything always takes you so long, hyung," he mutters at last, when Lu Han throws the towel into the bathroom from halfway across his bedroom and slides into bed next to Sehun. He presses their hips together, and Sehun moves so that his head is on Lu Han's chest.

"Are you complaining about that now?" Lu Han asks, unimpressed, and Sehun chuckles.

"Okay, maybe sometimes that's a good thing," he says.

Lu Han flicks at his nipple. "Sehunnnie, honestly you are a brat," he says. "But fuck you're amazing."

Sehun's laughing, but his ears turn red, and he hides his face into the crook of Lu Han's neck. "You're pretty great yourself. Even if your lube preferences are kind of weird."

"And whose fault is that?" Lu Han asks, exasperate, and commences a tickle attack before Sehun can possibly ask him to explain that.

  
  


 

 

**a/n** : Lu Han's first startup was inspired by an existing startup called [ Madefire](http://www.madefire.com/about/), which I wanted to credit for the idea :D  



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